Sonia leads attack on govt over Rafale deal
The Congress and the Opposition stepped up their attack on the government over the Rafale deal on Friday, with UPA chairperson and former Congress President Sonia Gandhi holding a protest in Parliament premises; party president Rahul Gandhi calling it “biggest ever” defence scam in an event in Chattisgarh; and Opposition MPs trooping into the well of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha demanding a joint parliamentary committee to probe the deal.
Sonia Gandhi along with opposition MPs, including Raj Babbar, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma, Ambika Soni, CPI’s D Raja, and AAP’s Sushil Gupta, among others, protested in front of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue in Parliament complex, holding placards and raising slogans.
Addressing an event in Raipur, Rahul Gandhi said the price of the Rafale jets “magically” rose from ₹540 crore to ₹1,600 crore per piece.
The government has said that the prices aren’t comparable on account of customisation of the aircraft, and also that it is prevented from sharing specifics on account of an agreement with France, from whom the jets are being bought in a government to government deal, and in the interests of national security.
Inside the two houses of Parliament, Congress parliamentarians entered into the well of the house holding placards and raised slogans demanding a JPC.